Rachel's Personal Hero
by Lalls
Summary: Rachel's at the wedding, watching familiar faces and thinking about the past. Or maybe future?


Rachel watched Kim Tan smiling down at his newlywed wife with mere apathy. To her great surprise, her first thought belonged to Young Do. She scanned the room unintentionally, but she knew he wasn't here. He formally apologized for not attending the wedding because of some business matters in China, but everyone knew the real reason for him not being here. Rachel thought it was ridiculous nevertheless. It was impossible for them, given their social status, not to see each other at some point. She wondered when he would finally get it and give up. It couldn't bother him that much after more than two years, could it?  
It certainly didn't bother her anymore.

She took a sip of champagne and went back to their high school years for a while. To be honest, she never stopped wondering what it was about that girl that attracted both Kim Tan and Young Do so strongly at the same time. She was nothing. She didn't belong to their world and yet she did become the whole world for those two. Even now, when she looked at her, dressed in the expensive wedding gown, there was still something very… simple and non-high about her. Maybe that was it. Maybe they liked the fact that they had someone to protect in their lives. Putting that poor and unhappy girl out of her misery, becoming her very own personal heroes.  
She shrugged her shoulders and checked the time on her cell phone. Only an hour or so and she can excuse herself without being inappropriate.  
She shivered when she felt as someone gently put their hand on her shoulder.  
"Kim Won?" She acknowledged him.  
He sat beside her and smiled.  
"How are you, Rachel?"  
"Isn't that what I should be asking you?" Her eyes pointed out at his wife siting at the table not far away from theirs.  
He laughed.  
"Well, it's not that bad. She's very challenging, that's for sure. I think you would understand each other."  
In retrospect, she admitted that Kim Tan did a brave thing. As much as she couldn't truly understand, standing against practically everyone must have been difficult, she gave him that. People loved their story. Rich boy willing to give up everything for a poor girl. It was extremely rare among people of their sort. Rachel knew it was only a matter of time till her mother sends her an invitation for another date she set up. She remembered the conversation she and Won shared at his wedding two years ago. He said that by looking at his brother he feels quite gutless. But she couldn't help but wonder if giving up the girl you love and marrying a proper woman for the sake of your company isn't a much braver thing to do.  
"President? I'm sorry, but there is a call you have to answer."  
Rachel recognized the father of Lee Bo-Na's boyfriend. Her mother refused to talk about it, but she noticed how she became tense every time that man was around. Kim Won sighed and looked at her apologetically.

She looked at Chan Young and amused herself with the thought of him becoming her step brother instead of Young Do. Lee Bo-Na probably wouldn't survive it. That was another thing she didn't get. Why did everyone think that the extremely possessive way she treated her boyfriend was cute? She would never say it loud, but she actually thought of him as one of the few sane people at that school. But then he screwed it up by becoming the man version of Lee Bo-Na.  
Her eyes met with Myung Soo, who showed her a bright smile and took a picture of her. He was also quite a rare exception, rejecting the family business, deciding to study arts instead. Except for Young Do, he was the only one from school with whom she met on more than just formal occasions. He was Young Do's friend. And since Young Do was the closest thing to a friend she had, they became…well, familiar with each other. Even though he usually gave her a headache, he was too much talk, too much movement and too much colours sometimes.  
"You look sweet as always, my dear Rachel." Myung Soo said to her looking into his camera and then disappeared again.  
Rachel watched the newlyweds again. They were busy talking to all of the people around them and she remembered the last day of high school. Between her and her classmates, there was no laughing, no crying, no hugging. Just a nod and a polite goodbye, like any other end of a day during the last few months, in which the school got really peaceful.

After the whole Kim Tan thing was over, her mother apologized to her for not 'teaching her how to like people'. Needless to say, that conversation made her awfully uncomfortable. She realized after some time that it wasn't love what made her throw a tantrum when Eun Sang showed up. It had something to do with her pride and her status more. But she never thought that having a zero desire to befriend people was a problem. Certainly not in this world. Her mother said it all the time anyway, it's not friends, it's acquaintances.

She stood up, deciding now was the time to leave. She said all of the necessary goodbyes and headed to the exit to pick up her coat.  
When the elevator came and its door opened, it was suddenly very hard to make her legs move forward.  
"Lee Hyo-Shin," she breathed out.  
He smiled at her, raised his hand and she was back in the school corridors, feeling uneasy underneath his gaze.  
"Hello, Rachel." He greeted her and came out of the elevator.  
It was the first time she saw him since the day they said goodbye in the hospital, which was more than two years ago. She tried to brush aside the responses in her body caused by his voice saying her name.  
"How was the army?"  
His hair was shorter. His body looked somehow bigger. But she didn't let her eyes wander too much in case he would notice.  
"Tough. But a very rewarding experience on many levels."  
She raised an eyebrow. His way of talking always made her nervous. There was something mysterious about him and yet she felt they shared something unsaid, even though their encounters were quite brief.  
She nodded and got on the elevator.  
"I wonder if I still have a girl waiting for me though," he followed her with his eyes, mischievous grin on his lips.  
She felt her cheeks warming up. That wasn't her strongest moment, blurting out the first thing that came on her mind.  
"We will have to see about that." She said and pushed the button.  
He gave her that half-mouth smile she suddenly remembered very well.  
"See you soon then, Rachel."  
She relaxed when the door finally closed. She didn't even realize her heartbeat was up. That was ridiculous. She barely thought of that guy in the past two years. The fact he has such an effect on her made her feel very uncomfortable. She didn't like it one bit. And yet she tried to think of the most casual excuse how to see him again. Soon.


End file.
